Tsitsino

Tsitsino is 50 years old from the small village of Samtredia district. She is married and lives with her son, daughter-in-law and mother-in-law, who is provided with a retirement pension. Tsitsino requested a loan from local financial institutions several times for a family business start-up, but without any success. Her loan request was rejected all the time, because of low income and the family’s poor living conditions.

The family is actively involved in agricultural activities. In particular, they have a pig, 2 milking cows and 2 calves. Tsitsino produces dairy products for selling. Her son has rented a bus and works on the bus line. Their income is hardly enough to buy food for the family. According to Credo estimations the family belongs to the subsistence poor category.

Tsitsino has requested a loan from Credo to start-up a family business. Tsitsino has now been approved for a loan within the framework of the new joint initiative of Kiva and Credo. The start-up loan program envisages provision of business start-up and re-startup credits with soft conditions to rural poor people, who do not have access to credit products. These rural poor people are regarded as “high risk borrowers” because of their low income. With the received credit Tsitsino will purchase a bus. After the bus is purchased, her son will not have to rent a bus and will be able to generate more income. The new business initiative, financed with the Kiva Start-up loan will significantly improve the living conditions of the family.

Additional Information

More information about this loan

This loan is part of Credo's startup loan program targeting particularly vulnerable clients who live at the subsistence level and have been unable to obtain credit due to lack of income from an existing business. This program offers them a longer repayment term and an annual interest rate that is 5% lower than the standard interest rate. By funding this loan, you are supporting a program that gives borrowers a second chance to start and grow small businesses. This has the potential to alleviate the effects of poverty, significantly improving borrowers' incomes and their families' quality of life. Learn more about Credo's startup loan program on the Kiva Blog.

About LLC Micro Finance Organization Credo

LLC Credo (Credo) is a microfinance organization in Georgia that provides sustainable credit services to alleviate poverty in rural areas, including business loans, agriculture loans, household loans, crop insurance and more. Kiva lenders’ funds are used to help the organization expand its outreach to even more entrepreneurs, farmers and households in remote areas.